Review of “In the Wrath of Legends”

Reviewed by guest reviewer J.Z. Pitts:

In the Wrath of Legends is the exciting sequel to David Buzan’s In the Lair of Legends. Everything that was awesome about the first one is here again: monsters of myth, a historical setting, and a kick-ass Native American protagonist. This time though, we aren’t following the exploits of Jolon Winterhawk. Instead, the hero of this story is his daughter, Chenoa Winterhawk. And as we come to find out, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.

The book opens with Chenoa, who is a member of Oregon’s elite U.S. Army Indian Scouts, on a mission that goes horribly wrong. Ambushed by a traitor from her past, Chenoa uncovers a plot to destroy a nearby mine and unleash a river upon a town of unsuspecting innocents, as well as discovering a scheme to assassinate the President. As if that weren’t bad enough, this is all taking place on the hunting grounds of two bloodthirsty monsters of legend.

Our girl Chenoa has her work cut out for her.

Like her father, Chenoa is a conflicted hero, yet still someone who strives to do the right thing. She is also smart, strong, and capable, but not invincible. All this contributes to making her an interesting protagonist.

For spoiler reasons, I won’t go into much detail on the antagonist. But I will say that I liked the villain’s connection with Chenoa. He is ruthless and brutal, an irredeemable man with a rotten heart, hellbent on unleashing death and mayhem for a cause he believes in. A despicable character, worthy of rooting for his downfall.

As for the action, it is plentiful and as gory as ever. I think this book may be more action-packed than the first one, full of edge-of-your-seat fun and adrenaline.

The prose here is fun as well. A lot of humor, colorful characters and descriptions. Buzan does an excellent job of making his characters sound appropriate to the time period, and is also great at giving each character a unique voice. All of which goes a long way toward suspension of disbelief.
Speaking of suspension of disbelief, you’ll need it toward the end of the book. Buzan takes a huge and brave swing here, expanding on the fantasy elements of the story. Again, without spoiling it, I’ll just say it could read like a deus ex machina moment. Which, in my opinion, isn’t automatically a bad thing. But it’s risky. Done wrong, and it’ll take you out of a story. Here, it’s clearly expanding on already existing fantasy elements. But it’s still a big expansion that comes at a very convenient moment for our beleaguered protagonist—your mileage may vary. I was able to roll with it.

Overall, In the Wrath of Legends is a blast and a worthy sequel. If historical action with a sprinkle of fantasy is your thing, check it out.